Beurre blanc—often simply called butter sauce—is made by reducing white wine and/or white wine vinegar with shallots, then whisking in butter to create a silky emulsion. It’s a classic accompaniment to fish and shellfish, and the sauce I always reach for when serving Chilean sea bass.
French chef Clémence LeFeuvre is credited with “inventing” beurre blanc by accident, reportedly forgetting to add eggs and tarragon during a frantic dinner service. However it came to be, we’re certainly glad it did.
Rich, buttery, and deeply flavorful, beurre blanc can be enhanced with a variety of herbs and seasonings. Like hollandaise, however, it’s prone to breaking—either from overheating, which causes the butterfat to separate, or from cooling too much, which allows the fat to solidify.
We add a touch of heavy cream to stabilize the emulsion and keep the sauce smooth and luscious.
Making Beurre Blanc Sauce
Cook the wine, vinegar and shallot in a heavy bottom saucepot until it reduces to a syrup – about 5 minutes.
Add the cream, salt and white pepper, then boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside until ready to finish.
Return it to a boil, reduce the heat to low and add the chilled butter a few pieces at a time while constantly whisking. Add the remaining butter before the previous butter pats are completely melted. Lift the pan from the heat if necessary to avoid over-heating.
When all the butter is incorporated strain it through a sieve to remove the solids. Transfer to a warm saucepan and discard the solids. Keep warm until ready to serve.
Beurre Blanc Sauce
A buttery sauce made with shallots, wine and heavy cream
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 1 cup 1x
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- 2 TBL shallot – minced
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch ground white pepper
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter – cut into tablespoons and chilled
Instructions
- Bring the wine, vinegar and shallot to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer in a small heavy bottom sauce pan over medium heat ubtil the liquid is syrupy and reduced to 2 or 3 tablespoons, about 5 minutes. Add the cream, saltand white pepper and return to a boil 1 minute, then remove from heat and set aside
- This may be done up to 1 hour ahead of time.
- To finish, return it to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and add cold butter a few pieces at a time, whisking constantly until all the butter is incorporated into the sauce. Do not let it overheat by lifting the pan occasionally off the heat.
- When all the butter is in, remove from heat and strain through a chinois or fine mesh strainer into a warm saucepan, pressing on the solids to get all the flavor. Discard the solids.
- Keep warm to prevent separation and serve as soon as possible